Dell Precision M3800 Owner's Review

Hi, I was wondering if anybody here is having problems running Quicktime HD video on their M3800? I am using Windows 7 professional and I can't run 1080p or 720p video either using the Quicktime app or embedding QT in a browser. In most cases I see a blank window sometimes it looks like it's running and usually with no sound. I can run other HD video types with through Windows Media Player or a Blu-ray drive (external of course). Just looking for some help. Thanks,
Larry

 

sounds more like a codec problem of sorts, most media player like VLC add broswer support for embedded files.

No offense but quick time isn't the best for playing such files.

Try VideoLAN - Download official VLC media player for Windows for now since its codecs are all self contained. If it works in that player then you know its a codec issue.

 

More bad news on my replacement: Windows 7 still freezes on waking up from sleep most of the time (I contacted Microsoft to see if this is a software issue that can be fixed) AND the replacement has the coil whine issue

That's in addition to the screen having dead pixels, as well as what I believe are foreign objects behind the screen. Here are the pics again:

Cell phone pic: http://imageshack.com/a/img856/9636/rwaw.jpg

Macro pics:
http://imageshack.com/a/img819/549/ieyu.jpg
http://imageshack.com/a/img560/4233/iv5a.jpg

The pics were taken at minimum brightness, which means it stands out even more when the brightness is turned up.

The 21-day return period ended two days ago, so I doubt Dell would allow me to return for a refund, and I kind of doubt they'd be willing to send me a second replacement. What do you guys think? What should I do? Even if the freezing issue is just a problem with W7 that can be fixed, it still has coil whine and screen defects..

 

It might be too late for a refund but there's no reason you can't complain about the stuff that's wrong with your machine. You paid good money for the machine and there is a warranty attached, you shouldn't have to put up with a sub-standard product. In my experience they're pretty good about handling this even if you need to have it serviced more than once (at least if you have pro support, without it you might have to "rattle the cage" a little).

 

Thanks DrNorton. I downloaded VideoLAN but still have the same problem. Thanks anyway.

 

Hi,

Can the M3800 be used as a desktop replacement for 3D work?

Currently I'm training in character animation, so I need to use Maya a lot. In the next 2-3 years I think I would need to use Mudbox/ZBrush and other programs more intensively because I would try to create 3D short animated films.
Initially my intention was to buy myself a M6800 almost maxed out, but is more extensive and is pretty big and heavy also. But, I also don't want to buy a very powerful laptop and never use it to its full potential. I'm not making a living out of 3D and I just learning for now and making it as an hobby. Currently I work as web developer.

So, is M3800 at least more powerful for 3D work than my current Desktop PC?
CPU: Intel Core i7 2600K 3.40GHz box
Graphics card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 470 OC

How fast or slow is M3800 compared to my Desktop PC?

 

The processor is in a somewhat similar ballpark, but will not be much faster or slower for most software; passmark is a poor benchmark, but it's a convenient one -- it shows 7765 for the processor in here ( PassMark - Intel Core i7-4702HQ @ 2.20GHz - Price performance comparison ) and 8611 for your desktop ( PassMark - Intel Core i7-2600K @ 3.40GHz - Price performance comparison ). That's not a difference most people will notice, and a lot will depend on the individual software (and on the memory and disk in each...)

I am not really sure how the GeForce cards compare generation-to-generation; on straight number of CUDA cores, you're in the same ballpark, but some of what NotebookCheck says makes it sound like 384 of these cores is more like 192 of the old ones, which would make the GPU a lot slower:
GeForce GTX 470 | Specifications | GeForce
NVIDIA Quadro K1100M - NotebookCheck.net Tech
By comparison, the K6100M that is top of the line in the M6800 is definitely going to blow both of the others away
NVIDIA Quadro K5100M - NotebookCheck.net Tech
and will probably even outperform a current generation midrange desktop card:
GeForce GTX 760 | Specifications | GeForce

In general, IME, very few notebook GPU will keep up with a current midrange or high-end desktop card, and those are only in some heavy and expensive gaming and workstation models (mostly 17" ones.)

The whole issue discussed up thread about OpenGL support and the Quadro vs. Geforce difference is out of my experience, but that may work in the M3800's favor for things like Maya. Folks who work in that field will have to comment (rather than using the 3D for gaming, where the XPS would have been a better choice absent the corporate discounting for mine.)

 

For 3D workstation apps like Maya, 3DS Max, Solidworks, etc., the difference between GeForce and Quadro is huge, even if you are comparing 2 cards with the same hardware. We are talking 5-10x the performance, depending on the application.

It is almost like they are crippling the OpenGL performance for the GeForce cards on purpose so they can charge an arm and leg for the Quadro equivalent and justify it by saying it's "professional" grade. I really, really hate that they do that.

 

I was looking for a high-quality laptop and found the M3800, which unfortunately is a bit too expensive for me. I'm thinking about getting the (almost identical?) XPS 15 9530 with i5-4200H processor, FHD screen, 500GB HDD (I already have a Samsung 840 Pro, I'll swap) for about 1200€. Eventhough, the i5-4200H may be perfectly enough for me at the moment, I'd really like to have the option to upgrade the mobile CPU, once I feel like it. Is the CPU soldered on the board or is it inserted in a socket / is upgradeable?

About Quadro vs GeForce: double precision calculations on GeForce cards are crippled to about 1/8th of what they usually could deliver (as you stated, OpenGL, OpenCL and CUDA are crippled, too ). For AMD cards, there is some user, who modifies the FirePro drivers to make them work with Radeon cards and bypass most driver limitations. Maybe there is something similar for GeForce cards, too?

 

This line is expensive, but they last a long time in my experience. I am still using my M2400 with a SSD.